Is miniDV professional quality compared to Sony's DVCam and Panasonic's DVCPro?

Answer 1

All three record exacty the same pixel resolution, 720 x 480. This was an international standard for SD video set many years before digital TV was invented. The compression ratio is also the same, about 5:1. They use the same format for the serial digital output and control, ieee 1394. Video and audio sampling is essentially the same for the 3 formats. Regular dv is not required to synchronize its 48k audio sample to the video rate which can be an issue with matchframe deck to deck editing. Regular DV also has an optional 12 bit/4 track audio mode which nobody uses intentionally.

DVCpro uses MP tape and faster speed in order to have a linear audio track that can be used for cuing purposes when doing deck to deck editing. Totally un-needed for computer editing. DVCam uses regular DV tapes, but run at higher speed. Neither pro system is designed to run with the mini size tape cassette. However all 3 systems use the same videohead drum diameter, so it is possible to build decks that can interchange formats.

Currently the ONLY advantage of the professional versions is the higher tape speed allows more dependable results when doing deck to deck editing. They all provide identical results when computer editing.

That being said, the camera end of the professional camcorders are generally offer better quality lenses, CCDs and more options for audio and other accessories.

Answer 2

The difference is horizontal resolution lines and compression ratio.
For comparison VHS produces 200 lines while MiniDV produces 500 lines. But DVCam and DVCPro produce 600 lines, minimum broadcast requirement resolution standard

Answer 3

As a format miniDV is not as good as DVCAM or DVCPro, but it also depends on your camera, if your miniDV camera is a 3CCD professional camera, then the quality difference is not so great.